Sand sculptors compete for world title at Hawkesbury International Sand Sculpting Championship

By April ChanUpdated
Mon 30 Dec 2013, 8:15 PM AEDT

Gallery

Sand Sculpting Championship

Sand sculptors from around the world have descended on Windsor in Sydney's north-west to compete for the world championship title.

Blue Mountains sculptor Jino van Bruinessen secured the title and $5,000 prize money at the third annual Hawkesbury International Sand Sculpting Championship on Sunday afternoon with his piece, The Portal.

Western Australia's Kevin Crawford and Susanne Ruseler, from the Netherlands, were named runners-up in the competition which attracted 12 of the best sculptors from around the world.

The theme of this year's creations was 'lost world', and sand sculptor Peter Redmond says many competitors chose prehistoric-based creations.

"There are some dinosaurs and other bits and pieces, some interesting takes on the animals themselves," he said.

Sculpting began on Boxing Day and ended on Sunday with the official judging.

Each sculptor was given 20,000kg of sand to work with, but it is not the type of sand you would normally build your sandcastles with.

"[The sand] has a lot of silt and that sort of thing that creates the body," Mr Redmond said.

"We compact it. It gets very heavily compacted, that gives it the density, so the ability to hold the shape."

He says the sculptures are able to maintain their shape due to the specialised sand.

"If these sculptures are able to sit without serious weather on them for a while, they almost become sandstone," he said.

"They are able to survive the elements reasonably well."

The sculptures are judged on technical difficulty among other criteria, though there are no specialised tools required to create the intricate details on the sculptures.

Tools may range from small spades to dentist tools and silicon spatulas.

Mr Redmond says it is a matter of "learning what you can do with the sand".

"It is a skill you learn, then just creativity," he said.

Entries will be on public display from December 30 until January 26, when the People's Choice award will be announced.